February 23, 2012

We're midway through our Cupboard Cleanout, and so far it's been pretty terrific. (Although we're also now out of pretty much all the "normal" foods we had in stock, so we're about to enter the Wild Wild West of pantry items.)

This Chinese Black Beans dish is actually something we've been making a lot lately, Cupboard Cleanout Challenge or no. It's loaded with great flavors, it's super quick to cook, it only uses one pan, and it's cheap. And it's filling. And it's meatless (well, except for the oysters in the oyster sauce).

What's not to love?

The key to the black beans is really the oyster sauce. It gives them that fermented-sweet flavor that's so terrific. You could use hoisin in place of the oyster sauce, which would give you a sweeter version of this dish. You could also use gojujang if, for some reason, you have that on hand.

We don't typically eat desserts during the week, but we guess we can make that sacrifice if it helps with our Cupboard Cleanout. We made a dessert of sugar-free Cheesecake Pudding, topped with tart Oregon cherries fresh from the can. You know what? Delicious.

Day 4 Breakfast: Protein shake with banana (Again. Don't judge.)Cupboard Items Used: Nothing from our list.Degree of Difficulty: 0.5 out of 10Verdict: Good as always.

Day 4 Lunch: Leftover Roast Pork with Apple-Cranberry Mostarda, and the Collards and Couscous SaladCupboard Items Used: Nothing from our list.Degree of Difficulty: 0 out of 10 (Yay, leftovers!)Verdict: Very nice little lunch for a workday. The mostarda was a great extra treat.

*If you have time, you can press the tofu to get rid of some of the water. After cutting it into cubes, place it in a single layer on a paper towel-lined plate, top with another paper towel, and then place a flat plate or baking sheet over it. Weigh down the baking sheet with something slightly heavy, such as a can of beans. Swap in new paper towels as they soak up the water. You can do this for an hour, or all day. Pressing isn't necessary, but it will result in crispier, golden tofu.

DIRECTIONS

In a wok or a large saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over high heat until just smoking. Add tofu and cook until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Remove tofu to paper towel-lined plate.

Reduce heat to medium high and add the remaining tablespoon of oil. Add garlic to oil, sautéing until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add remaining ingredients (except cilantro, if using) and simmer, stirring occasionally, until beans are tender and beginning to break down, about 10 minutes. If the sauce becomes too thick, thin it with water to your desired consitency.

Comments

We're midway through our Cupboard Cleanout, and so far it's been pretty terrific. (Although we're also now out of pretty much all the "normal" foods we had in stock, so we're about to enter the Wild Wild West of pantry items.)

This Chinese Black Beans dish is actually something we've been making a lot lately, Cupboard Cleanout Challenge or no. It's loaded with great flavors, it's super quick to cook, it only uses one pan, and it's cheap. And it's filling. And it's meatless (well, except for the oysters in the oyster sauce).